Eldridge Estate tasting

[Waiters Friend]

G'day

A short-notice tasting with David Lloyd on a flying visit to Perth last night re-introduced me to a producer I haven't looked at since visiting Eldridge Estate (on the Mornington Peninsula) in late 2016. We got to see 6 wines.

2016(? or 17) Fume Blanc. Apparently sees more / better oak than David's chardonnays (!). Pale yellow / straw. Passionfruit and tropical fruits on the (clearly Sauvignon Blanc) nose, and the oak not overly evident. The oak kicks in on the palate, however, in the form of texture and grip as well as flavour. This works well with the quite intense fruit flavours, and there's reasonably high acid leading to a medium finish.


2016 Chardonnay. Yellow in colour. A little struck match introduces lots of white peach. Oak (11 months, 25% new French) is well balanced and provides grip and texture. The wine finishes quite long.

2016 Wendy Chardonnay. The premium chardonnay, with only 2 barrels produced. Yellow in colour. The nose is a notch up from the previous chardonnay in intensity, with clean yellow peach flavours over cedary, spicy oak. Richness with finesse.

2016 Gamay. Gamay is Eldridge's point of difference in a land of chardonnay and pinot noir. Garnet in colour. A lively, spicy nose, with blueberry and red fruits. The palate is quite light, with the berries dancing over the tongue. There's good acid, modest supporting oak and a slight tannic grip.

2015 Pinot Noir. Garnet in colour. A perfumed nose, with red cherries and cedary oak. The palate is quite soft, with moderate acid and good fruit. Reasonably well balanced.

2015 Clonal Pinot Noir. Made from 7 clones of PN instead of 6. Slightly darker than the previous PN. The fruit is a little less up front, with a slight earthiness, some spice and a little mushroom. The palate is more to my taste than the previous wine - it's firmer and richer with slightly more tannic grip and a longer finish. Still a medium bodied wine, however.


I was particularly impressed by the Wendy Chardonnay and the Clonal PN. Now, where did I put those wines I bought 18 months ago?

Cheers
Allan